Site targets students looking for career path

A NEW website, aimed at enabling Scottish students to chart their future career prospects, is to be launched by the Scottish Government.

Plans for the site were announced yesterday by Keith Brown, the minister for skills and lifelong learning, during a visit to Aberdeen University.

The new website - "What Do Graduates Do? Scotland" - will allow school pupils, students, graduates and anyone contemplating a degree to see the career destinations of previous graduates by their subject of study. It has been developed by the Association of Graduate Careers Advisory Service Scotland.

A government spokesman said: "The website will launch in the coming weeks, offering a wide range of advice to prospective students and undergraduates as well as help for graduates looking for work and aiming to improve their job prospects."

Mr Brown said: "We identified the challenges facing those leaving education this summer early on and that is why we announced our Step Forward Scotland campaign and a 6.5 million package of measures that included thousands of modern apprenticeships, graduate training opportunities and a national employer helpline."

The Aberdeen University initiative involves the establishment of a new centre by the University's Careers Service which brings together advice on work placement opportunities, tutoring schemes, enterprise and entrepreneurship activities, and advice on studying abroad under one roof.

Peter Fantom, the head of the careers service at the university, said: "The new facilities place us at the heart of the student environment and we hope this will encourage greater use of the careers service by students of earlier years, enabling us to work systematically with all students during their university time."